If you listened to the ESPN 1170 AM local Quad City sports talk radio show yesterday, we were asked by former Iowa and NFL player to share a "Go Fund Me" account for for former Iowa Hawkeye, Fred Barr.

Fred Barr is dealing with a  horrific disease called Trigeminal Neuralgia.  According to the Johns Hopkins Medical website, Trigeminal Neuralgia:

  • Trigeminal neuralgia most frequently affects people older than 50, and the condition is more common in women than men.
  • Trigeminal neuralgia is the most common cause of facial pain and is diagnosed in approximately 15,000 people per year in the United States.
  • Trigeminal neuralgia pain is exceptionally severe. Although the condition is not life-threatening, the intensity of the pain can be debilitating.
  • Trigeminal neuralgia relief is possible: Medical and surgical treatments can bring the pain under control, especially when managed by an expert physician and surgeon.

It is so painful it is known as the "Suicide Disease".

For those Iowa fans who do not remember Fred Barr, the Go Fund me page has a great description of Barr and more...

Fred Barr was a teammate of ours at the University of Iowa from 1999 - 2002 and was a part of Kirk Ferentz’s first recruiting class. Fred was the only true freshman to start in 1999, started all four years of his career at Iowa and was a Co-Captain of our 2002 Big Ten Championship team. He ended his career with 376 tackles, which was the 4th highest total at the time and is still the 8th highest total in program history. He garnered All Big Ten honors at two different linebacker positions. During Fred's tenure under coach Kirk Ferentz, his class went from 1-10 in 1999 to 10-1 in 2002; a historic turnaround and a team which set the "Barr" for Ferentz led teams throughout his now 23-year tenure. Fred was very proud to have been selected as an Honorary Captain in 2017 and loved being able to share time with the Hawkeye players and staff.

Pease consider donating to Fred Barr.  They may be over the goal but there is so much more for medical expenses he will be dealing with in the future.

Fred Barr's Go Fund Me Page

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